5 things: NYC schools launch school kitchen dashboard to promote meal offerings

In this edition of 5 Things, Food Management highlights five things you may have missed recently about developments affecting onsite dining.

Here’s your list for today:

 1.    NYC schools launch school kitchen dashboard to promote meal offerings

Which New York City schools have cafeterias with salad bars? Which serve halal meals? Which have gardens? The education department quietly launched a school kitchen dashboard last month, giving parents and students a chance to learn what their schools offer. The website is part of a larger vision Mayor Eric Adams shared recently about teaching students more about healthy eating—his latest effort to steer New York students towards a better diet.

Read more: More food education and plant-based foods: Here is NYC’s vision for healthier students

 2.    Prepared meal sales booming, especially among high-income shoppers

Research from the recent PYMNTS’ study “Connected Dining: Ready-to-Eat Meals are Eating Restaurants’ Lunch” revealed that 57% of consumers (roughly 96 million people) had bought ready-to-eat meals in the past month, with those with the highest incomes doing so more often. Noting this demand, premium grocery stores that cater to bigger spenders are expanding their prepared food options. For instance, Whole Foods is reportedly considering opening commercial kitchens to make meals for its food bars and refrigerated cases.

Related:5 things: California health system adopts vegan meal program

Read more: High-Income Grocery Shoppers Turn to Prepared Meals for Convenience

 3.    DC downtown struggles as federal workers embrace remote work trend

It's not just major urban downtowns filled with private employers, such as New York and San Francisco, that are struggling to attract workers back to offices where they can patronize amenities like dining services. Washington DC, which relies mainly on federal workers, is also feeling the effects of the remote work culture, with the city's workers coming into the office less than half what they were before the pandemic, according to Kastle, which manages entry badges for 40,000 companies across the country. "Sustained remote work following the COVID-19 pandemic has translated into lower office utilization and Downtown commercial vacancy rates at record highs," of close to 18%, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development said in a statement. This is almost double the vacancy figure from 2018.

Read more: US Capital Sputters as Federal Workers Stay Home

 4.    Company offers plantmilk dispensers for college market

Despite their prevalence in retail, plant-based milk remains outside the norm in many institutional settings, including most colleges and universities. Recognizing a major lack of dairy-free milk options in higher ed, US-based firm Uproot has launched plantmilk countertop dispensers the company says are the first multi-variety plantmilk dispenser created specifically for food service, serving a combination of oatmilk, soymilk and chocolate peamilk.

Related:5 tech things: In-seat ordering and delivery expands in minor league ballparks

Read more: Uproot is Revolutionizing US Campus Dining with Innovative Plantmilk Dispensers

 5.    Courtside suites a hit at NBA arena

The BetRivers Backcourt Club, a courtside set of suites instituted this season by the NBA's Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena, seems to be the latest revenue-building trend in the sports world, with several other venues now copying the idea. Among its amenities is a six-course meal served to the club’s guests that allows arena catering services provider Delaware North’s chefs to loosen their creative muscles with different menus for each game.

Read more: Pistons success with Backcourt Club leading to other team's employing similar concept

Bonus: Big queso on campus

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]